not a good idea. A normal USB wall charger does not work well with iPad, so you would think the iPad specific usb charger is much more powerful than standard usb charger, hence be harmful to your k3.

It will work just fine. The iPad charger is capable of supplying more current than a standard USB charger, yes, but it's the device being charged that determines how much current it wishes to draw. Charging something with a lower current draw on a charger that's capable of supplying more current is absolutely fine.

I routinely charge just about everything with an iPad charger. No problems. As HarryT said, the devices will only draw the power they need, they aren’t being "force-fed" a charge.

The current (amps or milliamps) is something the load (read: device being charged) draws or pulls from the power source (charger). So in terms of the current, its true that the device is not being "force-fed". It draws only what it needs. If the charger can't supply the current that the device demands one of two things will happen; either the charger will be damaged by the excessive demand (not likely with modern current limiting circuits in chargers) or the device will have to live with the lower current (result: slower charging).

Voltage is different. It is the electrical analog of water pressure. In terms of voltage, the device is being "force-fed". Most modern electronic devices use circuits to regulate their input voltage. If the input voltage exceeds the maximum these circuits can handle, though, the device will be damaged.

Just to summarize, it doesn't matter what the power source is, the device will take the charge at its own rate, up to the limit the power source can supply.

So I can charge my K3 from my computer USB ports, the Kindle charger, or my iPad charger... just using the USB charging cable that came with the Kindle charger.

And I can charge my iPad from the computer USB ports, the Kindle charger, or the iPad charger... just using the USB charging cable that came with the iPad charger.

I'll get about the same Kindle charging time and rate from the Kindle charger (0.85A) or the iPad charger (2.1A), and a slower charge from the computer USB ports (0.1A) since the K3 charger only shows 5v/0.85A which is equal to or less than the output of the K3 charger and the iPad charger but more than the output of the computer USB port.

I'll get the fastest iPad charge time and rate from the iPad charger, the next fastest from the K3 charger, and the slowest from the computer USB port.

And all this can be accomplished safely because the device draws the power it needs to recharge, it is not force fed from the power supply. Basically, anything with a USB connection can be safely charged from any USB power source, but the charge time will vary considerably.

I just purchased one of those thingies that increase the number of sockets in a standard wall socket from two to three and it included two usb sockets so I thought it might be a nice addition to my collection (Meridian item #21602).

According to its packaging the usb is dc5v 350mA.

My Blackberry does not even notice it - no charging icon on the BB. I tried it on my k3. The yellow/orange light did come on but hours later the battery icon showed no change in power.

It does have an applied added label "Not compatible with all apple products."